Suitability of native milkweed (Asclepias) species versus cultivars for supporting monarch butterflies and bees in urban gardens.

ABSTRACT: Public interest in ecological landscaping and gardening is fueling a robust market for native plants. Most plants available to consumers through the horticulture trade are cultivated forms that have been selected for modified flowers or foliage, compactness, or other ornamental characteristics. Depending on their traits, some native plant cultivars seem to support pollinators, specialist insect folivores, and insect-based vertebrate food webs as effectively as native plant species, whereas others do not. There is particular need for information on whether native cultivars can be as effective as true or "wild-type" native species for supporting specialist native insects of conservation concern. Herein we compared the suitability of native milkweed species and their cultivars for attracting

SUBMITTER: Baker AM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7521339 | biostudies-literature | 2020

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature